PSI - Issue 84

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ScienceDirect

Procedia Structural Integrity 84 (2026) 821–828

© 2026 The Authors. Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Conference Keywords: half-joints; gerber beam bridge; design techniques; assessment techniques; geometric proportions; reinforcement layouts. This paper aims to study several methods related to the half-joints. At first, an overview of different methods available in the literature is conducted. Moreover, to improve knowledge of these structural elements, an investigation on their differences and similarities, in relation to typical geometric proportions and reinforcement layouts, is conducted. Then, results from the application of these methods to a selected existing half-joint, belonging to an existing reinforced concrete bridge, are shown and commented, in order to simulate different assessments of half-joints and to perform comparisons. Abstract Existing concrete bridges with half-joints, also called Gerber saddles, represent a large part of the bridges still in service today, very often affected by pronounced degradation, due to the lack of an adequate maintenance. Therefore, in order to correctly predict their vertical load capacity, it is necessary to know the methods adopted in the past for their design and assessment. III Fabre Conference: Existing Bridges, Viaducts, and Tunnels: Research, Innovation, and Applications An overview of different design and assessment techniques of half joints: application to a case study Antonella Ranaldo a *, Simone Celati b , Anna Lo Monaco a , Agnese Natali b , Lorenzo Sangiuliano b , Michele D’Amato a , Walter Salvatore b a Department for Humanistic, Scientific and Social Innovation (DIUSS), University of Basilicata, Via Lanera 20, Matera 75100, Italy b Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering, (DICI), University of Pisa, Largo Lucio Lazzarino 2, Pisa 56126, Italy

* Corresponding author. E-mail address: antonella.ranaldo@unibas.it

2452-3216 © 2026 The Authors. Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Conference 10.1016/j.prostr.2026.06.105